Wire management grommet with non-captive closure member

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a two-piece grommet adapted for holding a cable in an aperture, such as in a desk or work surface so as to absorb any strain imposed on the cable and to provide an attractive covering for the hole drilled to pass the cable. The grommet consists of two portions. The first portion comprises a cylindrical sleeve having a circular lip. The second portion comprises a cap having an extended flange and adapted to frictionally fit into the cylindrical sleeve and against the lip. The cap has an aperture cut into it through which the cable passes. A pivotal tab is connected under the cap to close the aperture when no cable passes therethrough.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Devices for passing a flexible non-flexible cord, such as a telephonecord or computer cable, through one or more elements such as a desk top,a piece of furniture, a wall or other type of installation are wellknown. Various devices to do this are known in the art and each of thesedevices has drawbacks. One device, which is now being used, requires aspring loaded cap which is held in place within a sleeve by the actionof the spring. This device is complex, expensive and difficult to use.Other devices consist simply of a cylindrical sleeve in which the holein the panel or desk must be cut to precisely the exact size or thesleeve will simply fall out, particularly if it is set in a verticalposition. If the hole is not cut to the precise size, means must be usedto secure the sleeve into the hole.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple, improveddevice for passing a cable or cord through an aperture in a work surfacesecuring the cord.

It is still a further object of the invention to provide a grommetcapable of being held easily in a hole cut into a work surface, forpassing an electrical cord.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a grommet forholding an electrical cord which can be easily held and used in both avertical and horizontal position.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide a means to closethe hole when not in use.

These and other objects will be described by reference to theaccompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the grommet assembly of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bottom of the cap portion of thepresent invention, and

FIG. 3 is a side view partially broken away of the cap portion of thegrommet of the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown the sleeve portion 10 ofthe grommet of the present invention and the cap portion 12. The sleeveportion comprises a cylindrical hollow sleeve 14, and a lip 16 having alarger diameter than sleeve 14. Sleeve 14 optionally has a rib 18slightly raised from the surface of sleeve 14. The cap portion of thegrommet of the present invention comprises a shank portion 20 and aflange or lip portion 22. Cut into the cap 12 is an aperture or slot 24through which will pass the electrical cable 36 which is held by thegrommet of the present invention.

The shank portion 20 of the cap is of a diameter substantially equal tothe inner diameter of the sleeve portion 10 so that the cap frictionallyfits and is held in the sleeve portion 10. The flange 22 rests againstlip 16.

A tab 26 is pivotably attached to the underside 28 of cap 12. Tab 26 isshaped so that it frictionally fits into slot 24. Thus, when no cable ispassing through slot 24, tab 26 can be closed so that no opening appearsin the cap 12 and it appears to be a solid surface. Tab 26 fits tightlyenough frictionally so that it stays in place in slot 24 until pusheddown to reopen slot 24.

Tab 26 has a connecting arm 30 which has a male connector comprising anelongated cylinder 32 at the end thereof. Cylinder 32 snap fits into afemale receiver portion 34 which holds cylinder 32 yet allows it topivot. Cylinder 32 can be pulled, with mild force, out of receiverportion 34 so that tab 26 can be separated from cap 12, if desired, andreplaced when needed. Thus, this design allows the user to swing tab 26down and out of the way if desired or it can be removed entirely.

Arm 30 is attached under tab 28 creating a step 37. Step 37 is necessaryto pivot tab 28 so that it is flush with the top surface of cap 12 whilearm 30 remains underneath cap 12 and out of the way.

In using the device of the present invention, a hole is drilled or cutinto the panel, wall, board, desk or work surface 25 through which theelectrical cable 36 is to pass. The sleeve portion 10 of the presentinvention is then pressed into place in the hole with rib 18 forming ameans for the sleeve portion 10 to be frictionally held in place even ifit is in a vertical direction. The rib 18 also provides a means to holdthe sleeve in place if the hole has not been drilled precisely to thecorrect size and is slightly too big. Rib 18 also acts as a dam to holdglue if it is desired to glue sleeve 10 in place.

The electrical cable 36 is then passed through the hole in the panel,wall, desk or work surface which now contains sleeve 10, and then cap12, with tab 26 pivoted down and out of the way, is placed over thecable and pressed into place, so that shank 20 frictionally fits intoand is held in the inside diameter of the sleeve 10.

The aperture 24 that is cut into the cap 12 can be made of a variety ofsizes and shapes depending upon the size of the electrical cable to bepassed through the grommet or the size of the hole in the desk. Tab 26,of course, must conform to the size and shape of aperture 24.

The lip 16 of sleeve portion 10 will rest on the flat portion of thewall, panel, desk or work surface, holding the sleeve portion 10 inplace, so that it will not fall through the hole. The rib 16 willprevent the grommet from slipping back and forth within the hole inwhich it is placed.

An additional advantage of the lip 16 and the cap 22 is the fact thatwhen holes are cut into walls or desks there are usually rough edges orchips in the wood, and lip portion 16 will cover these unsightly chips.On steel or metal surfaces, the grommet prevents cutting of the cable bya rough metal edge.

Referring specifically to FIG. 3, there is clearly shown a 90 degreeangle between the sleeve 14 and the lip 16. This 90 degree angle allowsthe lip 16 to rest on the surface of the work surface.

In addition, there is shown a beveled edge 38 on cap 12. The bevelededge 38 not only is aesthetic but will allow the sliding of objects overthe top of cap 12 with very little resistance.

The grommet of the present invention can be made of any convenientmaterial, such as plastic, metal, or wood, but is preferably made ofplastic since it is easiest to produce and also is a non-conductivematerial in the event of any electrical cables which may have a problemof shorting or shocking a potential user.

The grommet of this invention also has the adaptability that the sleeveportion 10 can be used without the cap portion 12 in the event any cableor cables must be passed through the hole that fill the entire insidediameter.

In additions two sleeve portions 10 can be placed back to back to coverboth the top and bottom or both sides of a hole in a work surface orwall. Caps 12 can be placed on one or both sides.

Having thus described the invention with reference to a preferredembodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thevarious changes in form and detail may be made therein

1.-13. (canceled)
 14. A method comprising providing a hole closuresystem comprising: a grommet cap comprising: a substantially circulardisk having an aperture extending to the outer edge of the grommet cap,the disk having a diameter larger than a hole to be covered; and aprojection projecting downwardly under the disk and having an outersurface with at least a substantial portion configured in conformancewith a substantial portion of an inner surface of the hole to becovered, a portion of the projection being cylindrical, the outer edgeof the grommet cap being radially outside of the projection; and anon-captive closure element elongated in a longitudinal direction andcomprising: a filler portion sized and shaped to fill the aperture inthe grommet cap, the filler portion having a planar top elongated in thelongitudinal direction; an arm that meets the filler portion at a step,the arm being elongated in the longitudinal direction; and a pair ofextensions protruding transverse to the longitudinal direction; thenon-captive closure element being moveable into at least the followingthree positions: a closed position in which the filler portionsubstantially fills the aperture in the grommet cap and the non-captiveclosure element is adjacent the disk; an open position in which thenon-captive closure element is removably carried by its extensions underand adjacent the disk, without projection above the disk, the extensionsbeing closer to the disk than is the filler portion, the filler portionhanging substantially lower than the extensions; and a separatedposition in which the non-captive closure element is removed entirelyfrom and does not contact the grommet cap; wherein the hole closuresystem is configured to permit the non-captive closure element to bemoved from its closed position to its open position while carried by thehole closure system under the disk, using movement that includesdownward pivoting; and moving the non-captive closure element from theopen position to the separated position.
 15. The method of claim 14,wherein the extensions are at opposite ends of an elongated cylinder.16. The method of claim 14, wherein the hole closure system isconfigured to permit the non-captive closure element to be moved fromits operable closed position to its open position without sliding. 17.The method of claim 14, wherein the non-captive element is permitted totouch the disk at least while in the open position.
 18. The method ofclaim 14, wherein the hole closure system is configured to permit thenon-captive closure element to be moved from its closed position to itsopen position in a single movement.
 19. A method comprising providing agrommet cap, receiver, and non-captive tab combination comprising: agrommet cap having a substantially planar top side, the grommet capcomprising: a flange extending to an outer edge of the grommet cap andhaving a substantially planar underside and a dimension larger than acircular hole to be covered; a shank depending from the substantiallyplanar underside of the flange and having an outer surface with at leasta substantial portion configured substantially in conformance with thesize and shape of at least a substantial portion of an inner surface ofthe circular hole to be covered, the substantial portion of the innersurface being circular; and a slot in the grommet cap extending throughthe flange to the outer edge of the grommet cap; a receiver dependingfrom the grommet cap; and a non-captive tab configured to fill at leasta substantial portion of the slot, the non-captive tab having at leastone connector, the at least one connector being dimensioned to fit atleast partially into a portion of the receiver under the substantiallyplanar underside of the flange, the non-captive tab being moveable intoat least the following three positions: a closed position in which thenon-captive tab fills the slot and the at least one connector is underthe substantially planar underside of the flange; an open position inwhich the at least one connector is under the substantially planarunderside of the flange and the non-captive tab can be removed from thegrommet cap by removing the at least one connector out of the receiver;and a separated position in which the non-captive tab is removedentirely from and does not contact the grommet cap; and moving thenon-captive closure element from the open position to the separatedposition.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the at least one connectoris dimensioned substantially to fill the receiver.
 21. The method ofclaim 19, wherein the non-captive tab is pivotable between the closedposition and the open position.
 22. The method of claim 19, wherein theat least one connector is substantially cylindrical.
 23. The method ofclaim 19, wherein the at least one connector is formed as part of a barextending transversely across an end of the non-captive tab.
 24. Themethod of claim 19, wherein the at least one connector comprises a pin.25. The method of claim 19, wherein the tab is elongated in alongitudinal direction.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the at leastone connector is dimensioned to fit in the receiver without slidingtherebetween in said longitudinal direction.
 27. The method of claim 19,wherein the non-captive tab in the open position is removable from thegrommet cap with mild force.
 28. The method of claim 19, wherein in theopen position the at least one connector is held in close proximity tothe substantially planar underside of the flange.
 29. The method ofclaim 19, wherein in the closed position the at least one connector isheld in close proximity to the substantially planar underside of theflange.
 30. The method of claim 19, wherein the receiver is configuredto permit the at least one connector to touch the substantially planarunderside of the flange at a time when the at least one connector is atleast partially inside the receiver.
 31. The method of claim 19, whereinin the open position the receiver permits the at least one connector tocontact the substantially planar underside of the flange.
 32. The methodof claim 19, wherein in the closed position the receiver permits the atleast one connector to contact the substantially planar underside of theflange.
 33. A method comprising providing a hole closure systemcomprising: a grommet cap comprising: a substantially planar disk, thedisk having an aperture extending to the outer edge of the grommet capand having a dimension larger than a hole to be covered; and aprojection projecting downwardly under the disk and having an outersurface with at least a substantial portion configured in conformancewith a substantial portion of an inner surface of the hole to becovered, a portion of the projection being at least partiallycylindrical, the outer edge of the grommet cap being radially outside ofthe projection; and a non-captive closure element elongated in alongitudinal direction and having a pair of extensions transverse to thelongitudinal direction, the non-captive element having a filler portionsized and shaped to fill the aperture in the grommet cap, thenon-captive closure element being moveable into at least the followingthree positions: a closed position in which the filler portionsubstantially fills the aperture in the grommet cap; an open position inwhich the non-captive closure element is removably supported by itsextensions under the disk; and a separated position in which thenon-captive closure element is removed entirely from and does notcontact the grommet cap; and moving the non-captive closure element fromthe open position to the separated position.
 34. The method of claim 33,wherein the non-captive closure element in the open position isremovably attached to the disk.
 35. The method of claim 34, wherein thenon-captive closure element in the open position is adjacent the disk.36. The method of claim 33, wherein the non-captive closure elementcomprises an arm extending from the filler portion to the pair ofextensions, the arm meeting the filler portion at a step.
 37. The methodof claim 33, wherein in the closed position the non-captive closureelement is prevented from sliding in the longitudinal direction.
 38. Themethod of claim 33, wherein the extensions are permitted to touch thedisk at least in the open position.
 39. The method of claim 33, whereinthe extensions are permitted to touch the disk at least in the closedposition.
 40. The method of claim 33, wherein the extensions arepermitted to touch the disk at least during the movement from the closedposition to the open position.